It's Time for a Treat!
by Karianasan
Summary: Finally getting something done, Daphne has a great idea in order to celebrate! Everyday/Slice of Life story starring Daphne! Thought I would get a little tale written out, I hope you guys enjoy it!
1. It's Time for a Treat!

"Ah, finally **finished!** "

Tossing up her hands in victory, Daphne was happy that she finally got her project done. Pushing her chair back, she was able to stretch her body after being hunched over her laptop for so long. The one problem with running a business, is that you really needed to spend a lot of time doing very dull numbers. From excel sheets to managing receipts. It was all part of the business of having a business. Kind of like having homework, as an adult. So, a necessary evil, that occasionally had to be conquered.

And as much as she loved shoving all the busy, computer work to her best friend, the one and only _Velma Dinkley_... It was something that she needed to do herself. She couldn't just push all the typing off to Velma and avoid all the work. Daphne had set aside the time to get a bunch of it done over the last few days... And she was finally done!

Pushing herself to her feet, she stretched again. Trying to get her spine in place. Feeling like she had worked herself almost into a u-shape with all of her typing. She needed to straighten out and become human again.

"Ugh... If I don't have to do that again, it will be too soon." Grumbled the red head, giving her long mane a ruffle. But she didn't want to leave her hair a mess like that, so she took the time to go next door to the second-floor shared bathroom and fix her hair.

"Ah... Much better."

It was therapeutic for her to run her favorite brush through her long strands. Smoothing out the rough bits, from all the head scratching and annoying numbers she just had finished fighting with. Taking the time to destress as she untangled the few bits that had gotten unruly over the last few days of disrepair and neglect over the stress of figuring it all out.

Almost as bad as when tax time rolled around. Though she had a person for that! No need for her to stress over it personally, but she still had to organize it and eventually look through the paperwork which could almost be as annoying as writing it up herself. But it was done for now, and tax time was months off. So, Daphne could relax and get back to doing things she enjoyed.

Feeling better after brushing her hair, and doubled checking herself in the mirror... She found herself wandering across the hall to peek into Fred's room. Prefect and clean as always, his room was devoid of the man himself. Probably off doing something out of his own room, working on something of his own. Though maybe he was occupied with another mystery coming up, which would be nice. Daphne could use a nice mystery to sink her teeth into after all that hassle.

"Hm... I deserve a treat for all my good work!"

Convincing herself, she gave the hallway a bit of a look back and forth before sneaking herself into her room. Pushing her door almost closed, she checked again for anyone who might be hiding in her room. (Which was just her being silly and trying to feel sneaky for breaking into her secret stash.) Nodding once that she saw no one lurking about, she moved across the room to her dresser. Dancing around some of the mess that littered the floor, she crossed the space and ended up in front of her clothing storage. Looking over her shoulder once more, she tugged on the largest drawer and pulled it open.

Against her mess that was her room normally, she did tend to keep her drawers somewhat in order. She liked keeping her clothes neat and ready to be worn, so she didn't just shove the clothing in like Shaggy was prone to doing. (If he even put away his cloths in the first place. Normally he just tended to have a pile of clean clothing, stacked next to his dirty ones. It was hard to tell which pile was which, unless you were Shaggy. And then it was still questionable at times.) Less she adds any unnecessary wrinkles to the clothing.

But in this drawer, she had more than neatly folded shirts. Pulling a few of the piles of shirts, she moved them to reveal a metal container hidden under the clothing. A grin forming on her face, she hauled the decent sized tin from her shirt stack.

"Ah **ha!** "

Hugging the metal close, she gives it an affectionate squeeze before putting back the shirts nearly and pushing the drawer closed. Tucking it under one arm, she moved back across her room to flomp down on her bed.

"Hmm..."

Lips twisting to one side of her face in thought, Daphne didn't just want to open up this without covering the noise up. It had a very particular sound and there was... Trained ears for these sorts of things. She wanted to treat herself after a job well done, and not have to share her prize with anyone else.

Thinking of this, she got back off the bed and left the container a moment to pop in a CD in her nearby boom box. It wasn't the first time she cranked up her music, so it wouldn't seem out of place for her to do it now. Though she wished she had been able to have it running earlier while she was crunching numbers. But unless she played just the right kind of music, she would find herself more distracted than anything else. She opted to not have any, to try to get it done quicker. So, now it was time for music and a treat!

As the melody picked up, Daphne returned to her tin. Crossing her legs, she got herself comfortable against some fluffy pillows and tucked the metal container into her lap. Gripping the sides with her calves and thighs, she used both hands to grip the tiny lip that the lid had. Fighting between her nails and the thin metal that made up the top, she finally freed it with a clear pop! Her face being hit with the delicious wafting smell of popcorn!

"M _mmmmmmm_... Shaggy has great taste!"

Drooling slightly, she looked down into her popcorn tin. A while ago, Shaggy had bought a container for each of them. But he had lost the list, and eventually enlisted Velma into a fun taste testing mystery to figure out who's tin was who's, and then wrote which flavors was stored in the collection. Hers was a delicious mix of Ranch, chocolate, and something called the Windy City Mix. Which was classic caramel and cheddar combination. Honestly... The chocolate was almost all gone. She loved the flavor and had spent way too much time indulging herself on it. The mix came next, but there was probably about a third left of them. Missing more cheddar then caramel, since she liked the flavor more. And last came the Ranch.

It didn't taste bad, but it certainly was the weirdest out of the group. But still tasty and actually pretty mild enough for her to enjoy it. And frankly, she was kind of in a ranch mood, so it worked for her.

Victory ranch!

But she didn't want to just shove her hand into the tin and get all the flavoring on her hands. She would sometimes do this, but she really didn't want to ruin the self-manicure she had done on herself by sucking off the delicious flavoring from her fingers. And it was too yummy of a flavor to waste cleaning off her hands. So, she needed a solution. Something that let her reach in and get at the popcorn, but not get it on her hands.

Looking about her room, Daphne tried to think of everything she had in her bedroom. She could just find something down stairs in the kitchen that would solve her problem. But that would run the risk of catching someone's attention, and two certain somebodies might smell the popcorn on her. She would rather avoid having to be grilled by them, if she could help it. Shaggy wasn't so bad, but Scooby was terrible. Her heart could only take so much puppy eyes before she caved. She was terrible at saying no to him, unless there was good reason for it. So, she wanted to avoid that if she could. She wasn't steeled against the power of the puppy eyes.

"There has to be something here... Got to think like Fred. Or Velma." That pair coming to mind with her predicament, "Those two always have the craziest ideas for using the most mundane objects into crazy contraptions... What would Fred or Velma do in this situation?"

"Well, Fred would just lick it from his hands... The philistine." Daphne said with a laugh, wishing she would be able to do that sort of thing as well. But the momentary pleasure would be than overshadowed with having to fix her nails. "Velma would be dainty about it... but what if they couldn't. Hm..."

Trying to talk it out, she was trying to work through the problem verbally. Helping her mind wrap around the problem and come up with a solution.

"Well, Fred would probably then spend a day and a half, because it's not a mystery... Drawing plans, making sketches and raiding every drawer from here to the garage to make some crazy rube Goldberg for picking out popcorn kernels and make some robot arm to feed it too him. Ugh, that is too complicated. Got to keep it simple. Hm... Velma might just use the top of the tin as a plate, if she was feeling lazy enough. But that doesn't help me fully, as I would still have to use my fingers to get at them from the 'plate'. And I would have to make some type of blocker, so that only the ranch flavor would come out. Ok, so that doesn't work..."

Tapping her finger against the nearby bedside table, she rapped the perfectly done nail against the wood. Vibrating it and making a nearby pencil to wiggle and eventually fall off the edge to the floor. The movement wasn't lost on the woman, as she reached over and plucked the now broken pencil tip from the fall. But she didn't mind, as it made it easier to use as a hair pin until she sharpened the point at a later date.

But it was as she was putting her hair up, and skewering some of her locks with the pencil that she got an idea!

"Trying to think like them, I should have been thinking like me!" She laughed, finishing fixing her hair before getting up and moving across to the top of another dresser in the room. Pulling open the top of the drawer, she pushed aside a bunch of various hair clips and scrunchies that she kept in there. Seeking around the space for a while, her hand finally fell upon what she wanted!

"Yes! This will work perfectly!"

Sitting in her hands, was a pair of hairpins, or more specifically... Hair sticks. Used historically across the globe, from the Greeks to Romans, Egyptians and even the Japanese. (And also, in America.) They are commonly a pair of decorative pointed sticks, that are used to hold a person's hair in a bun or similar hairstyle. And while she was using a pencil to do the work of the hair sticks, there was also another common, long wooden utensil that was commonly used in place of a hair stick.

Chopsticks.

And that is exactly the sort of thing, Daphne needed right now.

Checking the hair sticks for any leftover hair stray or other product, Daphne cleaned it off on a nearby hand towel so she would be able to use them like chopsticks. Licking them to check to any weird tastes, she only tasted the polished wood that made up the bulk of the hair pin. Flipping them around in her fingers skillfully, she settled the eight-inch pieces of wood into a classic chopstick positioning. Clacking them together, she sat back on the bed and fit the tin back into her lap.

Thrusting the sticks into the container, she took a second to managed to snag a piece of popcorn. Flipping it around, she popped the kernel into her mouth and melted as the flavor hit her mouth.

"M _mmmm_ … So Good!"

Going back in for more, she fished out a few more pieces to eat before melting a bit again. It also had been a while since she had gotten something to eat, so this was really nice overall. Not only as a treat, but soothing the growling stomach she had been ignoring and forgotten about for so long.


	2. Suddenly Scooby

Getting lost in her indulgence, she didn't notice when her door was being pushed in, nor the body that was sneaking past the doorway. He managed to cross the room unseen, passing by silently and stealthily until the very last moment.

Getting too eager, Scooby was drawn to the smell of popcorn and had trotted all the way up the stairs to find where the smell was coming from. Finally at his destination, he couldn't help himself. Raising up, he plopped his big paws at the edge of the bed with a heavy thud. Bringing attention to him, and his desire. Shooting her the biggest pair of begging puppy eyes he could muster.

With the impact to the side of her bed, Daphne had been so captivated by her treat, that she didn't see Scooby until it was too late. Getting hit by both barrels, the red head reeled back trying to fight against it. Pickup up the top of the tin she shoved it between her and him, squishing his face in the lid in hopes to avoid the face he was making. But it was the wrong move, as the lid still had small bits of flavor on it, since Daphne kept the tin on its side and the popcorn leaned up against the metal in it's hiding spot.

So Scooby took this as an offering and slurped greedily at the metal. Making sure to lick it clean, and her fingers that sat at the edges.

"Ewwwww… Scooby. No no… My popcorn."

Pulling the lid away, it was already slobbered on and devoid of any remaining flavoring. But it wasn't enough, Scooby wanted more. Pressing his advantage, Scooby stood up, and moved his big head towards the open top of the canister.

"Oh no you don't!" Gripping the tin, Daphne clung to it and tried to twist out of the way and raise it out of his range. But Scooby was a long boy and kept coming, snaking around and trying to reach the popcorn. Earning a foot thrust against his chest as Daphne frantically tried to keep her prize away from the hungry Dane.

And this is the scene that Fred came across. He had been downstairs, watching some TV in the living room while Scooby had been sleeping. But suddenly the Dane's head whipped around, sniffing the air. And soon the dog had scrambled off the couch and made a bee line for the upstairs. And while he was down there, that meant that there was only one person he was after. Poor Daphne.

"Heh, looks like Scooby found you snacking…"

"… You could help you know. Rather then just laughing." Trying to keep Scooby from her treat, she was in an awkward position, between keeping the container from his mouth by reaching her arms out as far as she could away from him. To the firm placement of her foot against the bed and him. Though it was doing little to deter the eager Scooby. And Daphne was not asserting herself very well as an Alpha, for the dog to be listening to her whiny protests.

"Alright, I'll give you a hand." Chuckling a bit more, Fred cleared his throat and changed the octave in his voice to a more commanding one. Straighten himself up, he gave Scooby a proper command.

"Scooby… **Down.** "

Stopping and bring his head around to look at Fred, he saw how serious he was. Huffing once, he pulled back and got down off of the bed and put all four paws to the ground.

"R'aw. Shucks"

"Thanks Fred. P _fttt._ " While some of her hair was still bound by the pencil, the rest was in her face from the struggle. Blowing air and pushing it out of the way as she tried to straighten herself out and get back to a normal sitting position.

"Well, he was a good boy… So, doesn't a good boy deserve a treat?" Fred instigated, his words sending Scooby into a small dance, though he was still under the 'down' command, so he just wiggled in place and thumped his tail around. Agreeing with Fred's suggestion whole heartedly.

Sighing a bit, Daphne gave Fred a flat look as she tossed some of her hair to the side and out of the way. But, Scooby had in fact, been a good boy and listened… to Fred. Wiping her hand off on the nearby blanket, she reached in the tin and grabbed a small handful and tossed it at Scooby. Her nails already going to need a touch up, after this tussle. So, it was already past the point of avoiding it.

"R'ay!' Yipped Scooby, catching the tossed popcorn in seconds and scarfing the offering… Before realizing there was no more left. "R'aw… Ro more?"

"Hey, I'm hungry too!" Daphne defended, shoving a handful into her own mouth.

"Well, it is getting close to dinner time. Want to put that away and just go for some real food?" Fred offered, hearing Daphne's growling stomach from where he stood. And knowing that Scooby would always agree for food when it was offered.

"Rah rah! Rinner!"

"What is Shaggy doing? Is he working on anything for tonight?" Daphne wondered as she licked her hand clean.

"Well, he had to help his dad with something, but he wasn't back when I last was down there. So, we could always leave him a note and he could join us when he came back. Or if he doesn't make it back by then, we can always get him a doggy bag." Fred suggested, figuring that he would be hungry either way when he got back. He would either join them there or end up eating any left over they would bring home just for him.

"Hm, that works. What about Velma? Is she home?" Daphne had been bent over her own work, that she hadn't seen the woman for hours. She wasn't sure what had happened to Velma in that time.

"R'ill go ret her!" For the call off food, Scooby would go get Velma. Turning on his heel, he took off and made a clatter as he raced to get Velma ready so they could get food quicker.

"I'll go make sure he doesn't drag her by her sweater this time… Get dressed and I'll meet you down stairs?"

"Yeah, that works. Thanks."

Raising his hand behind him, Fred gave a small wave and moved out of her room. Closing the door behind him, to make it easier for her to get dressed into fresh, less frumpy clothing. Heading after the Dane to make sure he didn't run over Velma like he had done with Daphne in the sake of food.

This left Daphne to be able to clean off the slobbered top and put it back on for the popcorn tin. Making sure to tuck the container back into where she had hidden it before.

"Hm… I will have to think about hiding it in a better spot, if Scooby has it in his head to try to look for it. But I'll worry about that later. I wonder if Fred and Velma won't mind going to Carlos' place. I could use some ranch slathered chicken tenders and I think Julio is working for some amazing Root beer! Oh well, better get myself ready and ask if they don't mind going. A nice meal after slaving all day doing paperwork. Might as well guilty pleasure myself with tasty food for a job well done!"


End file.
